Secondary school students in the European Parliament

Yesterday, on 20th March, MEP Zofija Mazej Kukovič (EPP/SDS) hosted secondary school students from Gimnazija Slovenj Gradec at the European Parliament in Brussels.

?I am honoured that such a large number of you came all the way from Slovenia to visit Brussels. It is also a great honour for me to be able to speak Slovenian in the European Parliament. The Parliament is an institution that opens its doors to citizens, which is why we are especially happy to see Slovenian visitors. Today it is you, our youth, which is the glue of Europe. This is because you are full of knowledge and daring. You are our future. With your skills you can surpass the boundaries of my generation. You are the children of the internet, which is why you must give special thought on how to merge technology with basic skills ? skills that our forefathers had. We must connect the hoe with the computer. Food, earth and health are certainly opportunities for all of us. To dirty our hands with soil also part of being cool,? Mazej Kukovič said in her introduction.

MEP Zofija Mazej kukovič launched in 2014 the second round of the competition Food for Health and Jobs. With this project she wishes to create a network of likeminded people, who share a love for the earth, health and finding opportunities offered by the land.

Mazej Kukovič continued by saying: ?The fact of the matter is that in Slovenia there are current 26.300 hectares of overgrown farmland. At the same time, we import for more than one billion euros worth of food, there are 130.000 unemployed and each year the number of chronically ill patients increases. I see opportunities in all of these facts. Healthy food is an opportunity for health and entrepreneurship.?

?Be bold and brave when you decide on your future profession and all those things that you will do tomorrow. Be creative. You have to dream, to have your own dreams. Dreams do come to life. It is important to persevere and even more important to believe in yourself,? Mazej Kukovič encouragingly finished her address to the students.